England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Graveley St Botolph

The Parish

The parish of Graveley lies in the extreme west of Cambridgeshire forming a long stretch of the border with neighbouring Huntingdonshire, here a peninsula of Cambridgeshire land pokes into Huntingdonshire. Graveley is a middle sized village which sits roughly 5 miles northeast of the Huntingdonshire market town of St Neots. Graveley sits some distance from significant major roads the closest being the closest being the A1198 a little over 2 miles to the east which follows the ancient Roman Road of Ermine Street. Much of Graveley is built around a "U" shaped section of lanes with the main junction lying towards the western edge of the village. Like many parishes in this area of Eastern England Graveley would have largely earned its living from arable farming, the gentle terrain and light soils being ideally suited to cereal production. Graveley is drained westwards by small tributaries of the Gallow Brook which make the short trip to the nearby Great Ouse, this major river drains much of central eastern England making its way to the North Sea through The Fens and The Wash. Graveley is sited at around 40 metres above the sea in gentle terrain where local heights barely reach a further 15 metres higher for some considerable distance. Graveley parish was fairly typically sized for this area, covering just under 1,600 acres it would have supported a population of around 300 parishioners. In Domesday times Graveley was an equally rural place, held by Ramsey Abbey its assets merely totalled 7 ploughs.

The Church

St Botolph's church sits almost centrally within the village but is tucked away behind fronting properties to the  north of the main village street. The church is a fairly typical example of an East Anglian church showing a mixture of the Decorated & Perpendicular styles of the 14th century. This basic structure has, however, like so many churches been modified over the centuries. Most of the Decorated style can be found in remnants of the demolished northern aisle with octagonal piers remaining to indicate its former glory. The remainder, with the exception of the chancel, is later and Perpendicular in style shown well in the typical western tower utilising the local flint. That chancel was demolished and rebuilt in brick in the 1730s whilst further restoration of the 1870s replaced the medieval chancel arch as well as refreshing the windows. Fieldings Place leads northwards from the main street of the village and ends with a small parking area leading to a pathway heading onward to the churchyard. Sadly, for the photographer, the churchyard is full of trees making for a real challenge to adequately capture the church.